Apparatus for



STATES .WENT OFFICE.

ROBERT J. MARCHER, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

APPARATUS FOR APPLYING METAL LEAF TO MOLDINGS, &C.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 40,055, dated September' 2.2, 1863.

To all whom it may concern Beit known that I, ROBERT J. MARCHER, of the city, county, and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Machine for Applying Gold and Silver and other Metal Leaf and Foil to Moldings; and 1 do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specilication, in which- Figure l is aside sectional view of my invention, taken in the line x, Fig. 9; Fig. 2, a plan or top view of the same.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the two figures.

This invention consists in the employment or use of a tip or brush applied to an arm, which is attached to or connected with a slide, and has a spring bearing against it, all being arranged in such a manner that the operator can with the greatest facility remove or take up the metal leaf from the book or pile and deposit it upon the molding.

The invention also consists in using, in connection with the tip or brush arranged as above specified, an endless apron, arranged to operate con j ointly with the brushslide in such a manner as to admit of the leaf when applied to narrow moldings being cut by the operator into strips of a width to suit the moldings.

The invention further consists in a means employed for feeding the molding tothe brush,

the feed mechanism being arranged to operate conjointly and automatically with the brush and endless apron, as hereinafter fully set forth.

To enable those skilled in the art to fully understand and construct my invention, I will proceed to describe it.

A represents a bed-piece, of any suitable length, which has a dovetail groove, a, made longitudinally in it to receive a sliding bar, B, on which the molding C to be gilded or covered with metal leaf is placed. This sliding bar B has a rack at one side near its bottom, into which a pawl, D, engages. (See Fig. 2, in which the rack is shown by dotted lines.) The pawl D is kept engaged with the rack by means of a spring, E, and the pawl D is connected by a bent lever, F, with a slide, G. This slide G works in a groove, b, in the bedpieceA and between guides c c, said groove and guides being at right angles with the sliding bar B. The slide G is of such a height as to project a trifle above the molding G on the bar B, and to the upper surface of said slide there is attached by a hinge or joint, d, an arm, H, provided with a flat brush, I', at its outer end, the head J of said brush being attached at right angles to the arm H, as shown clearly in Fig. 2. The arm H has a spring, a", bearing against its inner side.

K isa box, which has a position at right angles to the bed-piece A, and in which an endless apron, L, is placed, and directly over this endless apron there is a slide, M, on which the leaf N is placed in a pile, or one leaf upon the other. The slide M, leafN, and endless apron L are in line with the brush l.

To the inner roller of the endless apron L there is attached at one end a ratchet, 0, into which a pawl, P, catches, said pawl being attached to a spring, Q, which is connected to an arm, R, placed loosely on the journal e of said roller. The lower end of the arm It is connected by a rod, s, with a' pendant,f, attached to the slide G. (See Fig. l.)

The operation is as follows: The spring a has a tendency to keep the arm H and the brush l elevated above the molding O, and the operator at the commencement of the work shoves the slide G forward and at the same time draws inward the slide M until the leaf N is underneath the brush I. The operator then wit-h his index-finger presses down the arm H, so as to bring the brush in contact with the uppermost leaf of the pile, as shown in black in Fig. l, and the slide M is then.

shoved back, as shownin red, leaving the leaf', which is in contact with the brush, on the 4apron L. The operator then cuts a strip from the leaf of sufficient width to covcr and extend across the molding, and, releasing the arm H from the pressure of his finger, draws back the slide G until the tip or brush, with the strip of leaf attached, is over the molding. The arm His then again depressed, as shown in blue, so that the brush l will lay or deposit the strip of leaf upon the molding. The arm H is then again allowed to rise and the slide G drawn back to its fullest extent and is again shoved forward for a succeeding operation. Each time the slide G is shoved forward the sliding bar B is moved a distance equal to the length of one tooth oi' its ratchet, so as to bring a succeeding surface of the molding underneath the brush I, and by this same movement of the slide G the p'awl Pis made, through the medium of the arm R, to engage with the ratchet 0 and move the apron L, so as to bring another portion of the leaf previously laid upon it directly underneath the brush I, and another strip is cut from said leaf and deposited on the molding, as before.

Thus by this simple arrangement moldings may be gilded or covered with metal leaf with the greatest facility and rapidity, and by any person of ordinary ability. Hitherto experienced workmen were required to perform the work in aperfect or neat manner.

I would remark that I do not confine myself to the precise arrangement of the arm H and its relative position with the molding C, as herein shown and described7 for it may be varied or modiiied in variousways-for instance, the arm H may be provided with a joint or swivel to admit of being turned laterally, and the molding arranged so as to be parallel with the arm H,the arm being turned so as to bring the brush and leaf over the moldings at each backward or return movement of the arm.

The arrangement herein shown and described, however, would probably be preferable.

Having thus described my invention,whatI claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. The employment or use of the tip or brush I, attached to an arm, H, and arranged with or without a spring, ax, or with the equivalent of a spring, to operate substantially as and for the purpose herein set forth.

2. The endless apron L,in combination with the arm H, tip or brush I, and slide G, arranged for joint operation as and for the purpose specified.

3. The combination of the endless apron L, slide G, arm H, tip or brush I, and the sliding bar B, which supports the molding C, actuated from the slide G through the medium of the pawl E, lever F, and the rack in the bar B, substantially as and for the purpose set forth. A

ROBERT J. MARCBER.

Witnesses:

PETER VAN AN'rwERr, ALFRED MARCHER. 

